While working in clay has become my main form of creative expression over the past several years, my first love is painting. This particular piece is one of my largest, and it actually began its life as an entirely different painting! Originally painted as a close-up view of a rose in a more soft, Impressionist style, this was something I made for my mother many years ago. After she moved and no longer had a proper space for the painting, I opted to transform it into something completely new. While the old painting is entirely covered up, I ended up using many of the petals in the original as an outline for this design. This work is more representative of my style as an artist. I love to play with bold colors, pattern mixing, and a more illustrative style. The figure in the center evolved into a kind of a self-portrait. I named this piece after my favorite work at the Crocker Art Museum, Wallflower by Tip Toland. Though this painting is very different from her large installation piece, I get the same feeling when I look at her central figure as I do the one in this painting.